Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Zen Pottery

When I made the trip out to the Portland Nursery on Division Street a few weeks ago I also discovered Zen Pottery near the intersection of 82nd and Division. If you are in the market for large ceramic containers this is the place for you!They had every imaginable shape and color, and the prices were very reasonable, some might even say cheap!

Many were still wrapped and nested so it made browsing a little difficult. They also had a few metal planters, although none of them were priced.

By the looks of things I would guess they recently opened.

If ceramic pottery isn’t your thing how about stainless steel? I stopped by IKEA the other day to see what their summer collection was looking like. Disappointing! At least at our Portland IKEA which I must say has about the most pathetic seasonal department of any IKEA I’ve been to (and as a former employee I’ve been to a few). However in the Home Org department I found this fabulous Rundel stainless steel laundry bin.

Looks kind of like a giant plant pot doesn’t it? And look…it comes with a lid that hides the soil!

Of course the size of the opening restricts some plants, and you would need to drill the bottom for drainage, but at $39.99 and 2ft tall it’s an interesting container alternative!

They also had a smaller matching trash can (no lid on that size) but I was unable to get a picture of it due to the gossiping teenagers that had set up drama camp in front of the display.

Since I’m on the subject of IKEA hacking here’s another. Need a few little pots for your seedlings but want ones more attractive than peat pots? Try the IKEA Älmhult tumber, it looks like a porcelain plant pot and at 29 cents they are a great deal, just be sure to drill a hole in the bottom for drainage.

9 comments:

Wow, this place has everything. The right pot can really make the plant. Tip I learned recently is take the focus plant around with you when looking for the container to see how they may work together. Matti

Wow, I would love to hear more about your experiences with IKEA. I do have them to thank for the furniture in my kids rooms and part of my family room :-).I love large containers that are affordably priced, which is not always easy to find.

Matti, that makes too much sense! Isn't easier to just buy a couple of pots and then which ever one doesn't work you then go buy another plant for? :)

Noelle, I was employed at IKEA Seattle, which was the first non-company (franchise) store in their history. It certainly has thrived...but in the beginning they had a lot of issues to sort through. I only made it 3 months, it was tough to be management in a company that was figuring things out everyday.

I might need to check out that zen pottery place, I wonder if their metal pots are reasonably priced like the ones out at crate and barrel, I really liked those. I agree about Ikea this year, I went out to check out the garden furniture, after missing out on last year's stuff, which I loved. The best I can say is that I saved a bunch of money, not buying much. Got some solar powered chinese lanterns and a cycad.Good Ikea hack with those tumblers.

Zen Pottery (formerly Asiana Pottery) is cheap because they ripped off numerous wholesale customers before they torpedo-ed their wholesale business and opened their retail store. They took deposits on orders, then "went out of business" and kept the deposits... nice!

If you are interested in buying pottery from a local business that has been in Portland for over 10 years, visit us at Dragon Gardens Northwest (www.dragongardens.com) and feel comfortable knowing someone wasn't ripped off in order for you to receive a good price.

I found fantastic pots at Zen Pottery on Division. I recommended it to a friend and haven't been able to locate the address. I checked google maps and it looked like it might be gone. I live on the west side of Portland so it would be great if someone could confirm that it is still in business and the intersection. Thanks. Marah